


Dead men walking

by Graskyn



Category: Doctor Strange (2016), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Everyone Needs A Hug, Hurt Stephen Strange, M/M, Tony Stark Has A Heart
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-25
Updated: 2021-01-10
Packaged: 2021-02-28 20:55:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,005
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23293603
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Graskyn/pseuds/Graskyn
Summary: Tony Stark turns up at the Sanctum Sanctorum after his supposed death. Stephens about to have a breakdown.
Relationships: Tony Stark/Stephen Strange
Comments: 1
Kudos: 96





	1. Chapter 1

Stephen sat by the fireplace, staring absently into the flames as the cloak brushed his bloodied cheek. It had been a mere two hours since he returned from the soul stone and his body felt like shattered lead. As the battle of the compound came to an end, he did not hesitate to open up a portal and evacuate the area as soon as possible. No one would care anyway, they’d probably hate him as he lead the black widow to her death and the iron man to a familiar fate. He let heavy lids close as his head tilted towards the fire.

A strong, persistent knock irritated the sanctums doors. Stephen groaned, lifting his tall stiff figure out from the worn leather chair. He didn’t want any visitors, not now, not ever. He just wanted to sleep and hide. Uneasy steps lead him to the sanctums doors and with an overly aggressive flick of a wrist he cast them open. Pain twinged in his wrist and heart as he saw the figure standing at the doorstep.  
Tony Stark jumped at the harsh opening of the large wooden doors. His expression was aggressive as he met eyes with the tired sorcerer. He could punch his snobby face right now.  
“Nightmare, goddamnit stop playing your cursed tricks!” The sorcerer yelled, ignoring the man in front of him.  
“Doctor Strange, you lost a screw or something?” The shorter man questioned.  
Stephen waved his hands about, casting a weird symbol Tony couldn’t recognise and tensed up.  
“You can’t be here, you can’t be real!” The sorcerers eyes gleamed with panic. His pallor more pale than before and hands shaking angrily.  
“Strange, I’m real. I’m right here and you’ve got some explaining to do.”  
“N-no you’re dead!”  
Tony pouted, has the sorcerer lost it somehow?  
“I’m real you dick!” Followed with a strong gut punch from the shorter man. The taller cowered over his stomach and leaned against the door.  
“Yep- you’re... real” He wheezed “Must’ve got my timelines crossed.”  
“Crossed your what-?”  
“Timelines, must have gotten them confused, that’s all” Stephen reassured with uncertainty.  
“Oh, of course, I understand” He didn’t.  
“Do you want to come in Stark, you’ll catch a cold?” Strange asked through chattering teeth.  
Stark was dressed in just a white tee and shorts, his previous injuries from battle covered with bandages and aggressive layers of makeup. The man looked good for just coming back from a war, his white shirt gleamed in the sunlight brightly.   
“Strange, it’s practically 100 degrees out, I don’t think I’m getting the sniffles anytime soon.”  
The taller man locked his grey eyes onto the clear blue sky. It was a nice day, so why did he feel like he’d just been portalled to Mount Everest, again.   
“Indeed it is... sorry I must’ve-“  
“Crossed your timelines again? Geez you’d make a lousy TimeMaster.”  
“-lord” Stephen humoured, looking back down at the man.  
“What?”  
“It’s timelord-“  
“Whatever!” Stark pushed the taller man aside and marched gracefully into the spacious sanctum.  
Stephen lumbered behind him, legs threatening to give way with each step. He adorned a light jacket to hide the goosebumps that riddled his arms.   
“So, why did you leave so urgently Strange?” Tony pouted as he aimlessly ran his hand against the arcane wall.  
“I’d done my job”   
“Your job? Strange, this wasn’t a cleanup in isle 12 at Walmart! This was war! A war you orchestrated!” Tony pinched his eyebrows and turned around to Strange, seeing his speechless face.  
“Tony-“  
“Tony? Since when has it been Tony?”  
“I-I...Stark I’m sorry” He pulled his body into an armchair and deflated into it.  
“You left us Doc, up in Titan. You let the universe suffer. You were needed,Strange, we needed you! Nat needed you...”  
“The hell was I supposed to do Stark? Not die?”  
“Yes! That would’ve been possible if you didn’t hand over that goddamn stone!”  
“Wrong....” Stephen huffed quietly.  
“What?”  
“I always die...”  
Stephens hands trembled as he shook his head rather violently. His skin grew paler than before as sheen of sweat coated his forehead.  
“Death is what gives life meaning....”  
“Doc, what are you on about?”  
“Tony, I’ve died so many goddamn times!” Tears exposed themselves within the sorcerers sharp eyes.   
“How?”  
“The stone, the loop, dormammu....” His voice was loud in the empty sanctum. Sparks flickered from his hands as pain coursed through his soul.  
“Stephen, I’m sorry-“  
“No please, don’t. It’s not your fault. It’s mine. I deserve the pain”  
“No you don’t-“  
“Bullshit! I deserve it. I was an arrogant bastard who caused harm to so many- I am an arrogant bastard. Thought I could save the world all by myself twice. Thought I could make a deal with a demonic entity to save the world... thought I could manipulate the universe to defeat thanos but all I did was fuck shit up! I deserve it-“  
Stephen felt light headed, all that talking was exhausting. His eyelids felt heavy but he was determined not to succumb to his exhaustion. He got up from the chair and came face to face with Tony. The taller man now the same height as his back arched awkwardly.  
“Now get the hell out of my house, Stark!”  
Tony faltered at the harsh tone but didn’t move.  
“No Stephen.”  
Strange was about to speak when his body crumbled, his lead legs finally snapped under the pressure of his splitting headache and overwhelming exhaustion. The cloak did its best to keep him upright.  
“O...out- s-stark” He whispered through chattering teeth.  
“No fucking way! Stephen you’re not okay. I’m going to help you!” He grabbed the sorcerer bridal style and placed him back into the chair, watching him helplessly try to stay awake.  
“Stay awake for me... I’ve got to call an ambulance”  
His attempts were no hope, Stephens eyes closed but his body still fidgeted. Stark finally had a good look at him. A large gash decorated the side of his head and purple bags hung to his bottom eyelids.  
“Stephen, I’m sorry...”


	2. Awakening

“What happened to him?”

“I don’t know Wong, you tell me. You’re his magical sidekick after all!”

Wong frowned as he paced the hospital halls, the billionaire tapping his foot against the leg of a chair adjacent to him.

“Because I’m not his sidekick Stark. I’m just a librarian who occasionally checks in on him! And anyway, I was still at the battle by the time you’d found him!”

“I see... I see.. but why would he simply just leave when he was injured?”

Wong huffed and stopped his pacing, staring blankly into a room filled with rushing doctors.  
“Because... Tony Stark... He is Stephen Strange and he does not believe in receiving help and will always place blame onto himself for what he has done in his past life, current life and simply lives that never existed.”

“The futures....” Tony brought his tapping to a halt, head hanging solemnly towards the floor.

“Not just the futures...”

Tony’s head cocked.

“He’d used the time stone once before, back in 2016. While the avengers were off fighting each other a dangerous entity from the dark dimension threatened to take over our world.”

“And what? Strange looked into the futures-“

“If only...” Wong shook his head, “Stephen cast himself into a loop against the entity, dormammu, a loop that replayed itself every time he’d he’d been murder by him. Vishanti knows how many times he’d died.”

“Wong why are you telling me this?”

The librarian sat down in a vacant chair opposing Tony and exhaled.

“It took him a few weeks to fully ground himself, to accept the idea he wasn’t going to wake up and the date would be the same... I fear...”

“That he won’t wake up in the correct timeline...” Tony ran a hand through his hair, “He’d get his timelines crossed... like he did in the sanctum when he thought I was... dead.”

Wong simply nodded.

—-

An irritating beeping noise had woken him. A noise he knew all too well. The smell of antiseptic invaded his nostrils and he proceeded to pry open his eyes.

“Clea? Clea?” He chokes out as he feels a hand connect with his limp shaking one.

“Shhh, it’s okay Stephen.” 

He attempts to retract his hand away as he hears the voice. It was too low and gravely to be that of Clea’s. No, her faint whispers and velvety smooth words were the mere opposite as to what he had just heard.

“Where’s Clea?” He questioned, vision and brain all still too foggy to comprehend whoever had been near him.

“Stephen, I don’t know who you’re on about. It’s me, Wong and I’m here with Stark.”

“N-No... you came to our wedding, Clea she was right with me... and Stark... Stark’s dead, remember? He got stabbed on Titan because I wouldn’t give up the stone!”

Stephen fussed in his bed, agitated by the numbness in his joints and the dull pain at the back of his skull whenever he spoke. 

“Stephen please, look at your hand...”

His vision cleared only a little more but he took a deep breath and looked towards his ring finger. It was decorated with nothing but scars. A wedding band he’d expected to see there hadn’t even left an imprint.

“What-?”

“Stephen that timeline never existed” Wong’s voice was quiet and soft. Stark simply chose not to intervene.

“My.... my wife-“ his voice was fragile as he broke down into a disastrous sob, leaning into the older mans robes.

“Shhh, it’s okay Stephen. You’re here. You’re real.”

“But she wasn’t-“

A silence hung in the air as the sorcerer stared blankly at his ring finger for what felt like hours. With each blink he suspected a white band to flicker into existence but he knew it wouldn’t happen. He knew this wasn’t the timeline. Wong reassured the sorcerer before leaving to attend to what he phrased as ‘the needs of the universe.’

“Stark...” the sorcerer spoke in his natural, assertive tone now as if his past actions had never happened. Tony almost jumped at his name.

“So the TimeMaster is back with us. Yes, Strange?” 

“Again Stark, it’s time lord.... how long was I out?”

Tony swivels his head around the room looking for a clock. He’d left his phone somewhere on earth during all the chaos.

“I’d say about two hours.”

Stephen frowns.

He tried to sit himself up within the sheets of his bed but only managed half way before a flash of pain exerted itself along his temple.

“Ah... concussion... that’s great.” He complained through clenched teeth.

“All the more reason why you shouldn’t be attempting to move right now.”

“Says the one wrapped head to toe in bandages!” Stephen huffed.

Although Tony seemed fit on his feet, his heavily bandaged body made him look like a mummy. Granted, he felt like a very good looking mummy but a mummy nonetheless. He rubs a hand against the back of his neck.

“You’ve got me there wizard, scoot over then.”

“What-“

Stephen had no time to react, the billionaire was already invading the hospital bed with his short being. He was tempted to push him off.

“Stark I’m sure there’s much more comfortable-“

Tony audibly gasped.

“What?”

“Are you refusing the universes saviour of sleeping where he wants?”

“Yes! And technically I-“

A single finger met Stephens lips.

“Shhhh... sleep”

Stephen was about to protest again when he realised the iron man had degraded from speaking words to snoring. His finger falling from Stephens mouth onto the bedding. He rested his head against the pillow next to his and stared into the mans ragged chestnut hair.

He soon follows in closing his eyes. Unknowingly wrapping an arm around the smaller mans body, like he’d done in many timelines before. Only this time the body in his arms is warm, breathing. Not cold and hollow as it should have been.

“You’re not real....” Stephen murmurs before finally descending into the darkness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I haven’t written in a long time oof sorry for the poor quality


End file.
